Akutagawa Ryunosuke
Was one of the primary writers in Japan that produced works ranging from short stories to poems. He was also the first Japanese write to translate works from English to Japanese and vice versa. In 1950, some of his famous works include the “Rashomon” and In a Grove” which were made into films. Due to a very loyal friend who supported Akutagawa Ryunosuke, there is a literacy award called the Akutagawa Prize in 1935. Sadly, when Akutagawa was young, his mother became insane and therefore was sent to his uncle in search for care. His father was a dairy man who could not support his family and especially the growing Akutagawa. Living with his uncle, Akutagawa found success in literature by attending the Tokyo Imperial University in 1913. In 1921 Akutagawa went to China and ended the career of writing because of serious health problems. In July 24, 1927 Akutagawa committed suicide on an overdose of veronal which caused him to have hallucination, paranoia, and delusions.


Akutagawa Ryunosuke
Was a modernist who believed that Japan should be modernized and have mutual bonds with European powers, especially England. Therefore he learned English and became the first translator of English to Japanese in the whole world.

Opposition of Akutagawa Ryunosuke
Literary critics in all of Japan neglected the writings of Akutagawa because the stories had subtle characterization which was aimed for the western readers. They believed it was not any different from another Eastern European story. Akutagawa was forgotten for awhile in Japan until recently where the readers found his stories to be “Skillfully written and demonstrate scope unrestricted to his own time and culture”-Anonymous.


Akutagawa Ryunosuke Works
Rashomon - __http://sites.google.com/site/renemalenfant/rashomon

Work Cited

1. " Akutagawa Ryunosuke Criticism ." eNotes - Literature Study Guides, Lesson Plans, and More. . N.p., n.d. Web. 12 May 2010. <http://www.enotes.com/short-story-criticism/ryunosuke-akutagawa>.

2. name:. "Akutagawa Ryunosuke ." www.kirjasto.sci.fi . N.p., n.d. Web. 12 May 2010. <http://www.kirjasto.sci.fi/akuta.htm>.